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From early deals to the last minute of the last-minute deadline event, Thursday, July 31, this is a one-stop shop for your results, analyzing the details of each deal.
Follow ESPN MLB experts Bradford Doolittle and David Schoenfield to evaluate and grade each step, with the latest score being the highest. This story will continue to be updated, so go back for the latest deadline analysis.
Sailors get:
1B Josh Naylor
Rattlesnake gets:
LHP Brandyn Garcia
RHP Ashton Izzi
Sailor Level: B+
This is the first big deal the week before the deadline, which is interesting, in part because the Rattlesnakes are going to deal with – Naylor might be the first in a group that might include Eugenio Suarez, Merrill Kelly and Zac Gallen, potentially introducing some interesting names for the deadline.
While third base is the Mariners' biggest offensive demand, Naylor gave them a full-blown batsman who has been one of the top contact hitters in the Grand Slam this season, hitting .292/.360/.447 in qualified bats and having 11 home runs and a 13-low strike rate. Naylor dealt most of the damage to the right-handed pitcher, reaching .310/.390/.493 in nine of his 11 home runs. It was an upgrade to the incumbent Luke Raley, who hit .248/.370/.397 against the right-handed, but only 20-20 against Southpaws, with the lightweight Donovan Solano serving as his platoon partner.
Editing selection
2 Related
Naylor plays every day and fits somewhere in the middle of the lineup, ranking the top 10 in strikeout rates, so his contact abilities would be a good addition. This also improves the bench in Seattle, as Larry can now fill in the right areas (although Dominic Canzone performs well) or DH, and Jorge Polanco may have some time in Cole Young's second base. Rookie third baseman Ben Williamson is a great defender but has only one home run on the 256 hit. Although Polanco has a lot of experience in third place in his career, he has never started there since April 4, as shoulder releases limit his throws.
In other words: The sailors can still seek upgrades at third base. The Rattlers may wait until July 31 to trade with Suarez, hoping that one of several teams that require a third baseman will succumb to the package prospect. The Mariners aren't giving up any of their top 10 prospects here, so here's speculation that Seattle baseball business president Jerry Dipoto and Arizona general manager Mike Hazen did not exchange text messages.
Rattlesnake Level: b
Although Garcia and Izzi aren't ranked in the top 10 sailor prospects for Kiley McDaniel, that's not necessarily a shock to their potential: Seattle's top 10 has a total prospect of the top 100. Garcia is ranked 13th on MLB.com’s team list, while Izzi is ranked 16th.
Garcia drafted in the 2024 Game 11 draft at Texas A&M, a surprising success story as a starter in 2024, but the Mariners moved him to the bullpen this season, and he just made his MLB debut on the 3.51 ERA after 33 nintings in 33 nintings in 33 nintings in 33 intern in 33 inter-a inter-a and triple-a. He threw the mid-90s sinker with a washer and cutter and kept the lefties at an average of 0.235 and .255 hits of .255. He may now be able to go straight to Arizona’s bullpen, which is the idea of the Rattlers trying him as a starter in 2026. He is a good sleeper prospect in an industry like this, at least the floor as a reliefer, and perhaps a rear end starter.
Izzi, a 21-year-old right-handed, mid-90s fastball, was a fourth-round draft pick for high school in 2022, but he struggled with High-A Everett, struggling with 5.51 ERA in 12 games. Although the right-handed batsman hit him, his fastball/sweeping batsman may end up as a relief agent. He is the development prospect.
There is nothing too flashy here, but Naylor won't have a huge market, he's competing with 1B/DH classes like Ryan O'Hearn and Marcell Ozuna, so Arizona may have to strike with Naylor first, giving the team more time to provide their other pending liberal parties.